Jackie Robinson

By: Wilson Wang

Jackie Robinson

By: Wilson Wang

Brief History

Jackie Robinson was born on January 31,1919. He was youngest of 5 children and raised by a single mother. Throughout his young childhood he was a respected athlete and he excelled in sports such as basketball, football, track, and baseball. Jackie attended UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) where he won 4 varsity letters for sports. From 1942 to 1944 he served in the United States Army as a second lieutenant. After he left the military, he started to play baseball professionally. Branch Rickey , president of the Brooklyn Dodgers drafted Jackie Robinson to play in the Brooklyn Dodgers therefore MLB (Major League Baseball).

What was the person involved in that made them a leader?

Jackie Robinson grew up in the dark times on America, where blacks and whites were segregated. There were many limitations on what "coloured" people can do. Because he was a black man he suffered from a lot of racism and discrimination.

What actions did the individual take to show leadership?

Robinson was the first Black player in Major League Baseball. He helped push for civil rights for "coloured" athletes. He raised awareness to the injustice and discrimination against black people. He broke the colour barrier. In his time almost everything was segregated. By being the first black player in MLB, he was able to break the colour barrier which allowed other black people to be able to play with white people.

Courage is not the absence of fear- it's inspiring others to move beyond it

Because Robinson was the first black man to play in the MLB, he was faced with a lot of racism and threats to his family and himself, even his own teammates hated him. However, despite all the hatred, discrimination and threats, he still had the courage to play and he led the dodgers to victory at the World Series in 1955. By doing so, Jackie Robin inspired others to do waht he has done and overcome all the racism and discrimination.

Lead from the front

Jackie Robinson is one of few in his time that took initiative to stand up against racism. He showed other black people that the limit to the possibilities should not be set by ones skin colour but your courage and will to do it. Robinson was a very inspirational figure and a very important individual that "paved the road" for other black players. His accomplishments and his will to conquer the fear of racism really shed the light and encouraged other black people to do the same.

Keep your friends close but your enemies closer

Jackie Robinson was able to conquer the hatred by not fighting back. He knows that people hate him and wants to kill him but he was able to stand his ground and not fight back. He knew that if he were to be aggressive did it would be bad. Instead of quitting and letting people get the best of him he was able to conquer the hate by befriending his enemies.